Palestinian Journalist Covering ‘The Great March Of Return’ Shot By Israeli Sniper On Gaza Border

A Palestinian video journalist and photographer was hospitalised after he was shot by Israeli sniper while covering The Great March of Return near Gaza’s eastern border.

Yaser Murtaja, co-founder of Ain Media production company, was shot in the abdomen by Israeli snipers perched on a hilltop on Gaza’s border. He was shot despite wearing a vest marked ‘PRESS’.

Ain Media, consisting of a dozen Palestinian media professionals, was covering the events taking place near Gaza’s border with Israel since Friday. In the past, the team have produced work for Al JazeeraDocumentaries, BBC Arabic, VICE, Alaraby TV, UNICEF, UNRWA and Oxfam amongst others.

Yaser said in an interview that his passion for filming and photography was born out of his desire to document the events taking place in the besieged Gaza Strip.

At least 23 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces in Gaza and more than 1,500 others wounded during the Great March of Return, a six-week demonstration and sit-in which started last Friday to mark Palestine Land Day and is calling for the implementation of the Right of Return.

The demonstrators are demanding the right for Palestinian refugees to return to their towns and villages in historical Palestine, from which they were driven in 1948 to make way for the state of Israel.

Israel deployed troops and even warned to use live ammunition against anyone who threatened Israel’s “security infrastructure”.